Fair-leader



Feb. 10, 1942.

F. P. LAWLER FAIR-LEADER Filed Oct. 4, 1959 P LA wLfe, IN VEN TOR.

Patented Feb. 10, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE an gram. I v I,

Frank Lawler, Chicago, 111., ass'lg nor to G-L- Corporation, San Francisco, Calif., a corporation of California Application October 4, i939, Serial No. 297,898

3 Claims.

Fig. 2 is a face view of the fairleader partly sectioned as indicated by the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1 with a small portion of the structure broken away, to disclose underlying parts. I

In Figs. 1 and 2 I show a housing ill of a cable winch or hoist having a bracket II by which it of the cable and the carrying of the cable through any one of a number of radiating paths;this device being arranged for effective operation in .aminimum space.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of this character especially adapted for use with a cable winch of the type employed on tractors or other vehicles to control a cable which is extensible either to a cable operated device mounted on the tractor or a device mounted on a vehicle connected to the tractor so as to be moved thereby.

A further object of the invention is to provide a fairleader having a swivel sheave which may be swung through a plurality of radiating planes and having a fleeting sheave disposed between the swivel sheave and a cable drum or spool, this fleeting sheave having axial movement so that it may. move in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the spool as the spool end of the cable shifts back and forth in being wound upon and unwound from the spool.

A further object of the invention is to provide having spaced walls and means for pivotally supporting a swivel block between the spaced walls, with an idler sheave mounted above the uppera fairleader adapted to be mounted upon a sup-' port which carries a cable spool, this fairleader lower part of the swivel block and the upper wall may be secured to the transmission structure at the rear of a power driven tractor. This housing supports a pair of cable spools l2 which lie on a horizontal axis on opposite sides of the housing I0. By means of bolts l3, a, fairleader I4 is secured to the upper part of the housing-Ill in upwardly projecting relation. This fairleader is of such form that it may be readily fabricated from metal plates welded together. It has a lower wall or base plate l5 from which a post or column I 6 extends upwardly, this post being of hollow construction and comprising front and rear plates I1 and side plates l8 placed substantially in edge to edge relation so as to form a box column.

At the upper end of the postl 6, an upper wall or head plate! 9 is welded, this upper plate having a forwardly projecting portion 20 defining the upper limits of a space 2| in which swivel blocks 22 are swung. Posts 23 extend upward from the upper plate i9 and have openings 2% therein to support shafts 25 in substantially parallel relation to the axis of the spools [2. These shafts 25 are held in place in the openings 24 by means of removable cotter pins 26 projecting over the ends of plates 21 which extend radially from ends of the shafts 2'5.

Each shaft 25 support a fleeting sheave 28 in such position that the rear portion 29 of each sheave will be in tangential relation to a substantially vertical plane which is tangential to the rear portion 30 of the associated spool I2. Herein the term tangential relation" is employed to define that relationship between a plane and a circular member wherein the plane or a line in such plane is tangential to the circle defined. by the circular member. Each fleeting sheave 28 is of such diameter that the front portion 3| thereof substantially coincides with a swivel axis A-A which extends vertically through the upper and lower walls l9 and I5.

Coaxial with each axis A-A the upper wall l9 has openings 32 and the lower wall l5 has openlugs 33; Upper removable intle bearing members 34 are secured by screws 35 tothe upper face Fig. 1 is a partly sectioned side view of a preferred form of my fairleader.

34 having cylindrical .portions 36 which project through and below the openings 32 so as to engage annular walls 31 formed at the inner upper edges of the swivel blocks 22. In a like manner lower pintle bearing members 38 are secured to the lower face of the lower wall l5 by means of screws 33, and these lower pintle bearing members 38 have cylindrical portions 48 which project upward through and above the openings 33 so as to engage annular walls 4| disposed at the lower ends of the swivel blocks 22 in alignment with the upper annular walls 31. interposed between the upper and lower pintle bearings 34, 38 and their corresponding'swivel sheave annular walls .31, 4| are bronze bushings 41 which serve as renewable wearing parts. These bushings 41 are preferably made to freely turn both on the pintles 34, 38 in the annular walls 31, 4| so as to,

offer two wearing surfaces and to permit easy removal. It will be understood that these removable bronze bushings 41 can be substituted by anti-friction hearings or the like if it is so desired.

Each swivel block 22 comprises a pair of side plates 42 disposed in spaced vertical planes and having the rearward portions thereof connected by and to the annular members 31. and 4| which consist of metal rings of cup shaped form. These members 31 and 4! are welded to the plates 42 so that the plates 42 are securely held in parallel relation and so that a rigid swivel block 22 is formed by the combination of the members 31, 4| and 42. The plates 42 have openings 43 disposed forward or to the right of the swivel axis A-A, as shown in Fig. 1, to support a bearing pin 44 in a position to cross the space between the plates 42 and to support in this space a swivel sheave 45, which is of such diameter that its innet edge 46 will be in tangential relation to the axis A-A. The annular members 31 and 4| comprise bearing elements cooperating with the bearing members 35 and 38 to form pivotal supports whereby the swivel blocks 22 may be swung around the vertical axes A-A, and supplementary bearing means may be employed in conjunction with the members 34-38, and 314l such, for example, as removable bronze bushings 41 shown in Fig. 2, and previously described in detail.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the four posts 23 which support the two shafts are reinforced in vertical position by means of a plate 58 which extends across and is welded to the rear edges of the plates which form the post 23. Each pair of posts 23 supports a guide or canopy 5| which is substantially cylindrical and covers the shaft 25 supported by the pair of posts 23. The outer curved wall 52 of this canopy 5| is positioned close to the periphery of the upper portion of the sheave 28 so as to serve as a shield for holding a cable in the groove of the sheave.

A cable 53 is wound upon each spool l2, and eachcable, as best shown in Fig. 1, extends up from the rear portion 38 of the associated spool to the rear portion 23 of the superimposed fleeting sheave 28. The cable then extends around the upper portion of the sheave 28 and drops down as indicated, at 54 along or coaxial with the swivel axis 'AA. The cable then passes through the opening 55 in the bearing member 34 to engage the rearward portion of a swivel sheave 45. As shown by dotted lines 51-, the

cable is carried under the sheave 45 and the working end 58 of the cable is then extended forward. The working end 58 of the cable may be carried forward. or rightward,,from the fairleader through any one of a large number of different radiating lines. For example, as shown by dotted cable on the spool.

lines 58a and 58b. 1, the working end 58 may be raised or lowered from horizontal extension, and as shown by dotted lines 580 and 58d in Fig. 3 the working end of the cable may be at the same time swung either to the right or to theleft from a centralized position, the swivel block 22 rotating on the axis A--A in accordance with the horizontal or lateral component of the movement of the working end of the cable from the centralized position shown in full lines in Figs. 1 and 3.

As the cable 53 is wound upon and unwound from its spool l2, the spool end 59 thereof'will shift back and forth in a direction parallel to the axis of the spool l2. The fleeting sheave 28 has a relatively long hub so that its area of engagement with the shaft 25 will be 'quite large, but the length of this hub 88 is such as to permit the fleeting sheave 28 to shift axially upon the shaft 25 in accordance with the shifting movement of the spool end 58 of the cable. Ac-'- cordingly, there will at all times be a flat winding of the cable across the body of the spool 12,

instead of one turn piling upon or crossing another so asto produce a jumbled wind of the As the spool and 53 of the cable 53 shifts to the left, as shown in the leftward portion of Fig. 2, the superimposed fleeting sheave 28 will likewise shift to the left, but to a smaller distance than the leftward shift of the spool end 58 of the cable. The movement of the sheave 28 in either direction from centralized position is limited by the length of the hub 80 as compared to the length of the shaft 25 exposed between the side walls of the canopy 5|; therefore, the front portion 54 of the cable will at no time move into wearing engagement with the wall of the bearing member 34.

In other words, the fleeting sheave 28 is free at all times to automatically assume a position intermediate of tangent point 48 on the swivel sheave 45 and tangent point 88 on drum l2. The force which effects this action is simply the line pull in the cable, and it will be apparent that this construction therefore enables the two vertical cable legs (1. e. the cable leg on axis A-A and the cable leg from the tangent point on the fleeting sheave 28 to the tangent point on the drum l2) to act in unison to minimize the lead angle of the cable which is being directed from the swivel sheave to the drum.

From the above description, it-will be apparent that the fleeting sheaves 25' disposed above the upper wall or head plate l8 have fleeting movementsin directions substantially parallel to the major longitudinal axis of the columnar frame longitudinal axis and a minor transverse axis,

both said axes being in a plane parallel with said head plate, a pair of sheaves at one side of the major longitudinal axis of said frame mounted between said base plate and head plate to swivel 1 through an arc of approximately degrees, a

pair of sheaves above said head plate and means on said head plate in substantial alignment with stantially parallel to the major longitudinal axis of said frame and in a plane at right angles to said plates and going through said major axis whereby cables engaging the swiveled sheaves and led over the shifting sheaves will impose direct compressive strains on the frame and base plate through the shifting sheaves.

2. A fair lead for hoisting drums comprising a spaced base plate and head plate, a frame on the base plate supporting said head plate, said frame being of columnar form and having a major longitudinal axis and a minor transverse axis, both said axes being in a plane parallel with said head plate, a pair of sheaves at one side of the major longitudinal axis of said frame mounted between said base plate and head plate to swivel through an arc of approximately 180 degrees, a pair of sheaves above said head plate and means including stationary brackets above said head plate in substantial alignment with said frame for mounting said sheaves for axial shifting or fleeting movements in directions substantially parallel to the major longitudinal axis of said frame and in a plane at right angles to said plates and going through said major axis whereby a cable engaging the swiveled sheaves and led over the shifting sheaves will impose direct compressive strains on the frame and base plate through the shifting sheaves, and arcuate guide between said base plate and head plate to swivel through an arc of approximately 180 degrees, a pair of sheaves above said head plate, a pair of laterally spaced brackets on said head plate in substantial alignment with said frame, shift means for said brackets and on which said sheaves are mounted for rotation and axial shifting or fleeting movements in directions substantially parallel to the major longitudinal axis of said frame and in a plane at right angles to said plates and going through said major axis,

whereby cables engaging the swiveled sheaves and led over the shifting sheaves will impose direct compressive strains on the frame and base plate through the shifting sheaves, and outward ly extending hub portions on said sheaves limiting the fleeting movement thereof in either direction.

FRANK'P. LAWLER. 

